Pascal Collasse
Encyclopedia
Pascal Collasse (22 January 1649 (baptised
) – 17 July 1709) was a French
composer of the Baroque
era. Born in Rheims, Collasse became a disciple of Jean-Baptiste Lully
during the latter's domination of the French operatic stage. When Lully died in 1687 leaving his tragédie en musique Achille et Polyxène
unfinished, Collasse completed the last four acts of the score. He went on to produce around a dozen operas and ballets, as well as sacred music, including settings of the Cantiques spirituels of Jean Racine
. His plan to establish his own opera house in Lille
ended in failure when the theatre burnt down. He dabbled in alchemy
with even less success. His musical style is close to that of Lully.
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
) – 17 July 1709) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
composer of the Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
era. Born in Rheims, Collasse became a disciple of Jean-Baptiste Lully
Jean-Baptiste Lully
Jean-Baptiste de Lully was an Italian-born French composer who spent most of his life working in the court of Louis XIV of France. He is considered the chief master of the French Baroque style. Lully disavowed any Italian influence in French music of the period. He became a French subject in...
during the latter's domination of the French operatic stage. When Lully died in 1687 leaving his tragédie en musique Achille et Polyxène
Achille et Polyxène
Achille et Polyxène is a tragédie lyrique containing a prologue and five acts based on Virgil's Aeneid with a French libretto by Jean Galbert de Campistron. The opera's overture and first act were composed by Jean-Baptiste Lully, who died from a conducting injury before he could complete the score...
unfinished, Collasse completed the last four acts of the score. He went on to produce around a dozen operas and ballets, as well as sacred music, including settings of the Cantiques spirituels of Jean Racine
Jean Racine
Jean Racine , baptismal name Jean-Baptiste Racine , was a French dramatist, one of the "Big Three" of 17th-century France , and one of the most important literary figures in the Western tradition...
. His plan to establish his own opera house in Lille
Lille
Lille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
ended in failure when the theatre burnt down. He dabbled in alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
with even less success. His musical style is close to that of Lully.
Works
- Achille et Polyxène, tragédie lyrique, (overture and first act by Jean-Baptiste Lully) 1687
- Thétis et Pelée, tragédie lyrique, 1689
- Enée et Lavinie, tragédie lyrique, 1691
- Astrée, tragédie lyrique, 1691
- Les saisons, opéra-balletOpéra-balletOpéra-ballet was a popular genre of French Baroque opera, "that grew out of the ballets à entrées of the early seventeeth century". It differed from the more elevated tragédie en musique as practised by Jean-Baptiste Lully in several ways...
, 1695 - La naissance de Vénus, 1696
- Jason ou La toison d’or, tragédie lyrique, 1696
- Canente, tragédie lyrique, 1700
- Polyxène et Pirrhus, tragédie lyrique, 1706